The dominant system in government is Microsoft Word, and Whitehall IT chiefs hope that by adopting PDF and HTML standards for viewing documents and ODF, CSV, TXT and HTML for using and sharing documents, other products will be also used, reducing the dependence on a single supplier.

But the standards proposed do not include Microsoft’s preferred format, Open XML (OOXML), so Microsoft is rallying its partners to try to convince the government to recognise OOXML as one of the approved alternatives.

“Mandating one open standard for discrete document formats over another completely ignores benefits enabled by a choice of modern formats and is therefore likely to increase, not decrease, costs,” said Ven der Bel in his letter.

“Microsoft believes that the least costly and most effective way forward for any organisation seeking to ensure the maximum range of interoperability, the richest range of functionality and the widest use of common formats should be to embrace multiple open standard document formats, e.g. both OpenXML and ODF.”

Van der Bel’s letter is careful not to instruct partners to decide one way or the other, and stressed: “It is not our job to change your mind, but we feel we should ensure you are properly appraised of a situation that may have an impact on your business.”

Controversy surrounds Microsoft open standard

OOXML was created by Microsoft and pushed through the International Standards Organisation (ISO) after lobbying by the software giant, but the move was controversial. Critics warned that an open standard controlled by one company could never be as interoperable as one that was independent and widely accepted.

The least costly and most effective way for any organisation seeking to ensure the maximum range of interoperability, the richest range of functionality and the widest use of common formats is to embrace multiple open standard document formats

“The latest release of Microsoft Office does now implement strict OpenXML, unfortunately the default .docx is still transitional OpenXML, you have to specifically select strict OpenXML when you save the file (which is buried in the options) and of course, in order to use Microsoft Office 2013 you need to be running Windows 7 or Windows 8.”

Wardley countered in his blog: “What that means is we're currently locked into an environment which it will cost £500m to escape from.”

The government has said that the adoption of open document standards is not intended as a move for or against any one supplier.

“It’s not about banning any one product or imposing an arbitrary list of standards. Our plan is, as you would expect, about going back to the user needs, setting down our preferences and making sure we choose the software that meets our requirements best,” said Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude last month.

Start the conversation

0 comments

Register

I agree to TechTarget’s Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and the transfer of my information to the United States for processing to provide me with relevant information as described in our Privacy Policy.

Please check the box if you want to proceed.

I agree to my information being processed by TechTarget and its Partners to contact me via phone, email, or other means regarding information relevant to my professional interests. I may unsubscribe at any time.